The Way It Came To Be
by Renai-chan
Summary: James finds out Remus is in love and is determined to find out with whom and get them together. Sirius, meanwhile, thinks James and Remus are getting far too close for comfort. RLxSB, JPxLE, RLxJP in a friend-with-benefits sort of way
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **The Way It Came To Be  
**Authors: **  
**Disclaimer:** Harry Potter does in no way belong to me nor do I claim in any way that it does. I am merely using the characters to fulfill my twisted imagination.  
**Genre:** Romance/Humor  
**Rating:** M  
**Pairings:** RLxSB, RLxJP (in a purely platonic, friend-with-benefits sort of way), JPxLE  
**Summary:** James finds out who Remus is in love with and is determined to get them together. Sirius, meanwhile, thinks James and Remus are getting far too close for comfort.  
**Authors' Notes:** I love RLxSB, and I also love RLxJP. I most especially love RLxJPxSB. I'll try to keep the third to a minimum, though. Maybe in future fics :)  
**Warnings: **SLASH, LEMON SCENES, SLASH AND SLASHY-SLASH-SLASHY GOODNESS ALL AROUND. Consider yourselves warned.

**Enjoy!**

Their prank had gone exceptionally well. It was absolutely hilarious when all the professors stood up after dinner and their robes flew up past their noses Marilyn-Monroe style (not that Sirius or James knew who she was). In fact, it was quite funny when students discovered what was up their professors' robes. Who knew Dumbledore had such great legs?

It was fortunate that he also had such great humor as he chuckled it off, waved his wand and the robes of the professors stopped keeping flying up. All those who ate at the head table, save for Dumbledore, forced their glares toward a particular table in the Great Hall: the Gryffindor table. More specifically, toward a group of four teenage boys who were almost fully succeeding in keeping their sniggers to themselves. They finished their meals quickly and departed to avoid the heated stares from their professors.

Upon exiting the Great Hall, they all burst out laughing, clutching their sides and wheezing out breaths between chuckles and tears.

"That was a fabulous idea!" crowed Sirius, tossing an arm over Peter's shoulder. James giggled the last of his giggles, wiping a tear out of his eye. Remus had long stopped laughing and was now slightly frowning as his sensitive hearing picked up a soft, hushed voice. Upon realizing who it was, he grabbed the naerest person and hauled him into an alcove behind a tapestry. He was just about to call out to the two other boys but his frantic whisper could not be heard over Sirius's boisterous voice. "Ahh, Wormtail. You keep hanging out with us and soon, you, too, will learn the secrets of how to think up a fabulous plan just like that last one I thought of!" Peter was just about to mention that that was James's idea and Remus's wand waving but he was interrupted.

"So it was your idea, was it, Black? And I suppose Mr. Pettigrew here was your accomplice?" came Filch's voice from around the corner. Caught nearly red-handed, the two boys froze and looked around for Moony and Prongs. Unable to locate them, they tried to run but Filch caught them by the scruffs of their necks and hauled them to McGonagall's office for punishment.

"Oh no..." Prongs moaned. He knew what was in store for them. McGonagall wasn't particularly impressed with the prank after it had proved to everyone that she, in fact, wore sexy, red, lacy panties. Remus hushed him while Filch and the two Marauders passed. Their was nothing they could do now. Their souls were in God's hands. After they had departed (no pun intended), the stag and the werewolf ran for cover to their dormitory. They would hole up there while tempers cooled. They knew, by Marauder code, Sirius and Peter would not rat them out (again, no pun intended). Upon arriving at their room, they again burst into laughter, falling over one another on the floor.

"That was so awesome!" James snickered, heading to his trunk and pulling out a bottle of firewhiskey and two shot glasses, as he always did after a particularly good prank. Remus breathed out deeply after the last of his chuckled died down.

"That was particularly good" he agreed, filling the glasses with the alcohol. Prong plonked down beside him and raised his glass.

"To Sirius and Peter, who took one, or two, for the team!" he toasted. Remus clinked his glass with James' and gulped down his share of firewhiskey. They knew Sirius and Peter wouldn't be back for quite a couple of hours due to the detention given to them, but the remaining Marauders had the grace to wait up for them, knowing as it was their fault too why the rat and dog were in detention. Thus, they spent the next hour drinking and talking about random stuff... well, mostly James' love life.

"This is what I don't understand" Remus started, "Why is it that you claim you love Lily, and yet you continue to sleep around with other women. I mean, if I loved someone, and I'm not saying I am" he added rather too quickly, as James noted, "I wouldn't sleep with anyone! I'd probably be pining away trying to get that person to notice that I am reserved exclusively for him... er, in your case, her."

"You are forgetting one thing, Remus. I am a boy" James declared, as if that explained everything in the world.

"What am I, a tree?" the werewolf asked sarcastically, one eyebrow raised. The stag rolled his eyes and huffed.

"I am a BOY. A teenage boy with random, excessive hormonal bursts that need to be satiated if I want to remain a functional human being" he clarified, "I mean, I NEED sex. What else am I supposed to do when I get a raging hard-on?"

"Jack off? Take a cold shower? Ignore it? Think of Dumbledore and Serverus getting it on?" Remus counted down with his fingers. They both turned toward each other and laughed at the last one. After they had quieted down, James asked, "You know all about my love life. But I never remember you talking about yours. Is there anyone you like in particular?" Remus frowned very, very slightly.

"No" was all he said, but James made a mental note to pry it out of him later.

"But I mean we've learned about werewolves and such and I, of course, have done some research myself. Don't your hormones, you know, go out of whack when the full moon is approaching?"

"Well... yes..." Remus bit his lip, in a way that James found oddly... attractive.

"So what do you do about it?" came the impossibly innocent inquiry. Remus knew better; he knew that the inquiry was far from innocent. He did not answer, he did not move. James did though; he moved closer... just a hairbreadth away. "Like now for instance?" he asked in a whisper. Remus bit his lip again as he felt himself harden. He didn't know if his friend what joking or being totally seductive.

Maybe it was the full moon or maybe it was the firewhiskey. It may be even both. Remus didn't know. But at that moment, Remus was more interested in something other than in thinking. He and James nearly simultaneously closed the distance between them, pressing their lips together in a heated battle for dominance, one that Remus was quickly losing. Not that he cared. James's leadership instincts started to kick in as he took control of the kiss, pushing Remus to lie back of the ground without breaking contact. The werewolf moaned softly as James lay down on top of him, interlocking their legs. As their matching erections pressed against one another's, it was James who moaned this time, just a little bit more loudly and more lustfully than Remus.

Seconds passed as both boys found the need to part for air. James was first to break the contact, seeing as Remus could not very well do so. They stared at each other, millions of thoughts running through their heads. Why were they doing this? What was going to happen afterwards?

At some point, after these thoughts came and passed, another thought came into Remus's head. He was sure James was thinking the exact same thing: who cares? He grabbed James by the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, pressing their lips back together. James responded hungrily, grabbing the edges of Remus's shirt and pulling on them. Buttons popped and flew everywhere but went unnoticed as James, without pulling his lips away, drew his legs up beside Remus's arms so that he was kneeling over his bestfriend to support him while he ran his hands over the werewolf's chest. Remus, with a little more care, hurriedly undid James's buttons and pushed the shirt down to his elbows. James let his lips leave Remus's mouth and wandered down to his neck before picking a spot of the flushed white flesh and absently sucking on it. Remus moaned softly and arched his back to press their clothed cocks together, drawing a hiss from the boy above him.

Encouraged by Remus's actions, James's hands found the buckle of Remus's belt and started removing it along with his pants and boxers. After freeing the prize inside, he grabbed it and started, in Remus's opinion, painfully slowly pumping it. With his free hand, James pulled Remus up by the neck into a sitting position and hissed into his ear: "Suck me." Remus nearly came at his lust-filled voice, giving him no choice but to obey.

Remus forced his shaking hands to James's waist and struggled slightly to get to his task. Upon freeing James's straining erection he took it into his mouth and proceeded with his ministrations. James groaned and entangled both of his hands into Remus's shaggy brown hair, guiding the werewolf's head up and down his length.

"Oh God, Remus... Where did you learn tha- thaaaat..." he moaned. Remus smirked around his cock. Did his friends truly believe he was as innocent as he looked? Experience should have told them that, while he may look like a prefect on the outside, he was definitely true Marauder on the inside. Encouraged by James's moans, he sucked on James's long, hard cock until the stag was just about ready to come. That was when James pulled him off, much to his suprise. James did explain when, moments later, he growled: "Get on your hands and knees." Remus complied quickly, feeling no need to stall. With the same thought in mind, James grabbed his wand and performed a spell that was certainly not meant to be used during sex, but was pretty much acceptable to lubricate both himself and Remus. "Hold still. This might hurt a bit" he muttered.

"Silly deer. Whatever made you think I was still a virgi-in" he drew in a breath mid speech as the head of James's cock slipped into him. James made another mental note to ask the werewolf about it at later date. Right now, he was too busy fucking said werewolf's brains out to care. He pushed himself slowly to the hilt and waited for Remus to adjust to him. When he gave a small murmur and a wriggle, James took that as a cue to start pulling and pushing in and out of him. He set the pace slowly at first but as Remus's moans did nothing to quell his sexual appetite, his pace became faster. Soon, he was pounding into the werewolf who was very nearly crying out in pleasure. He damned himself for not putting on a silencing spell so that he could hear every yelp clearly and unrestrainedly, but there was no time for regrets now. He grabbed Remus's cock and started pumping him as he felt himself nearly climaxing. With a guttural cry he pushed himself to the hilt inside the werewolf one last time and came hard, Remus following not long after.

They both collapsed on the floor, James trying his best not to squish Remus. He pulled out slowly, moaning, before rolling over to lie on his back beside his best friend. They both spent a few moments trying to regain their breath before Remus mumbled: "This was not what I had in mind when I pulled you out of Filch's way." Then they both burst out laughing.


	2. Chapter 2

Just to make things clear, this is an RLSB fic; its not categorized incorrectly :) It will be in future chappies, please be patient, I'll try to make things worthwhile for all you RLSB fans :)

I wanted to do a different chapter 1, just so you don't have Prongs and Moony screwing in the first chapter and to make it clear that its Siri that Remmy wants. However, I haven't been writing fics for so long that I wanted to publish one NOW. And since this is what I started with, this is what you get :) So there :) Enjoy!

*********

Remus spent breakfast seated across two black-haired young men. One with messy hair that was impossible to tame and the other with silky black hair that made Remus want to run his fingers through it. While lunch was usually a routinary affair, after what had transpired yesterday evening, he found his vision flickering twice as many times more at the bespectacled boy and half as many times less at the object of his desire. He drowned in his thoughts, trying to sort them out, while poking at his food.

He and James hadn't spoken since then; they simply ignored it as if nothing had ever happened. And, although Remus played his part well, he found it quite unsettling that they had no closure about it. He glanced at James once more. Considering the boy's track record, he knew, with a fair amount of certainty, that closure was the last thing on James's mind. Closure for James usually came in the form of "thank you, ma'am" (you know... "Wham-bam-thank you ma'am." and all that?). He glanced again at the guffawing boy who was in the middle of listening to Sirius regaling his stories about their detention last night and the detention they were about to have this evening. He heard Peter piping up from time to time, supplying a small amount of his perspective, which barely registered over Sirius's boisterous voice and James's booming laugh.

A small sigh escaped his lips. He was never going to get a decent amount of sleep until this issue between him and James was settled. Sure, he could pass it off as a one-time-only thing, which James fully and completely seduced him into doing. Sure, he could blame it on firewhiskey and the heat of the moment. And most definitely could he blame it on the moon...

Sirius emitted a low laugh which made Remus's stomach flutter. He inadvertently clutched at the offending organ and gazed at the canine animagus once more, for the umpteenth time that day.

The question now to ask was could he allow this thing with James to end?

With the surprising help of the stag's insight, he did realize that he too was a boy and for quite some time now, he was coming close to losing his functionality as a human being. Ever since figuring out three years ago that women weren't doing him any favors in the sexual department and ever since finding out two years ago that Sirius had very nearly ruined him for other men, James had been the first person he'd slept with.

And it felt good... really good...

I mean, sleeping three feet away from the object of your lust was enough to drive him into hormonal overdrive every single night. Cold showers and masturbating were doing him very little favors, if at all. Getting Sirius to shag him was utterly and completely out of the question. He did not want a one-night stand with the boy, nor did he want to force the self-confessed womanizer into a relationship he did not want, especially if it could spell the end for the Marauders. Shagging other blokes? Been there, done that. Not exactly an effective thing considering he'd stopped with that two years ago. His gaze flickered once more to James.

This time, James caught his gaze, held it for a few second before dropping it. This was a cue for Remus to stop staring at the two Marauders. He gathered his belongings together and stuffed them into his bag.

"Oi, Remmie, where're you off to?" came Sirius's inquiry as the werewolf stood up.

"Class, Siri, and it's about time you headed off too" he answered with a sigh. Sirius simply waved the thought away with his hand before returning to his story. Remus shrugged and called to Peter. "Come one, Wormtail. McGonagall's axe is poised and ready to strike at your neck, better get your head off the chopping block and into her class early." Peter squeaked and hurried after the departing werewolf.

*********

An opportunity for closure presented itself later that night after Peter and Sirius had headed off toward detention. Remus entered the dorm and found James lounging on the werewolf's neat bed, arms tucked under the bird's nest he called hair and one leg rested on the bent knee of the other.

"Don't you have your own bed?" he called out to the stag. James smirked as he glanced at the boy.

"I do" he answered simply with a shrug. Remus raised an eyebrow but ignored him, dumped his bag on top of his trunk before heading into the bathroom.

"So what does McGonagall have in store for Padfoot and Wormtail?" he called out to his lounging friend while he splashed water over his face. He gazed at his reflection in the mirror, willing courage into himself as he readied for the task of bringing up yesterday's incident with James.

"Scrubbing the staff room toilets..." then a snicker, "with their own toothbrushes." Remus chuckled.

"Serves that show off right for claiming a prank that was not his." The werewolf strolled out of the bathroom and headed over to the side of his bed. He stared down at his best friend before grasping the hem of his bedsheets and giving a sharp, strong upward jerk. This caused James to topple onto the floor, screaming quite girlishly. Remus smirked in satisfaction and sat himself down on the bed and peering over the edge at the pureblood. James glared at him before launching himself onto said bed, right above Remus, pinning him down and giving his own satisfied smirk. Remus blinked at him owlishly. "James, I--." But he never got to finish his sentence as the bespectacled boy pressed their lips together hushing him. The werewolf gave a small squeak before a soft moan, afterwhich he lay both hands against James's chest and gave a soft push. James was the first to speak.

"We can talk later. It would be much easier to explain to Sirius and Peter what we're talking about at such a late hour rather than explaining to them why you've got my cock shoved up your ass."

"Tactful" Remus snorted sarcastically, "but no." James frowned. "Listen, I want to sort all of this out before it gets too far." The stag looked at him thoughtfully before sighing, sitting back on his heels and crossing his arms over his chest.

"There's nothing to sort out, Remus. You're thinking too much."

"Might I point out that I have a good reason to. It's not everyday I find myself being shagged by my best friend" Remus shot back. James chuckled.

"Okay, to make this short and simple, I'm doing you a favor and you are doing one for me. You need a sex life, and I need to tone down mine." Remus huffed at the shot at him. "This way, Lily won't think I'm being unfaithful to her and the bloke you're lusting after would think the same."

"There are three things wrong with that statement. First of all, _you and Lily are not together_!" the werewolf pointed out, rolling his eyes. "So, technically, you can't be unfaithful to her, no matter how many birds you shag. Second, I don't _have_ a sex life, so I could not possibly be unfaithful to, how did you put it? 'The bloke I'm lusting after'. Lastly" James opened his mouth to speak but Remus stopped his by holding up a hand, "Lastly, I am not _lusting_ after any bloke!" James smirked.

"Oh, I beg to differ, Remmie. I do believe that there is _someone_ you want" he declared. Remus frowned.

"Believe what you want."

"Oh, come on! I'm your best friend aren't I? Why won't you tell me?"

"Because there _is_ none!"

"Denial" James scoffed, "No matter. I _will_ find out who he is."

"Will you now?" Remus smirked. James tipped his chin up proudly before stalking out of the room. The werewolf watched the door shut close behind James before he sighed. What to do now? Lazy as the boy may be, he was just about as stubborn and bullheaded as they come. Merlin knows only death could stop James once he decided to do something. Well, death and Lily.

Hm... There was an idea.


	3. Chapter 3

Just to answer TheStrangeLittleGirl's question, yes, Remus has had past sexual encounters. What I meant was that James was the first person he has slept with ever since he found out two years ago that he likes Sirius a lot (he hadn't slept with anyone for two years, basically).

*****

Let it never be said that Remus had absolutely no influence over the actions of his fellow Marauders. Nor should it ever be said that the Marauders did not know where the library was located or how to use those things it housed, which we fondly call books. For at this very moment, the foursome were to be found gathered around a square table in the aforementioned place, quietly and studiously doing their work, said table piled high with parchment and quills and books on varied subjects.

Okay, granted that it was because Moony won a bet. But nevertheless...

"_I haven't brushed my teeth since yesterday evening..." moaned Peter as Transfiguration began. The three other Marauders stared at him in abhorrence._

"_That's disgusting, Peter! I used my toothbrush for scrubbing too, but you don't see my with anything less than pearly whites!" Sirius made it a point to flash said pearly whites. The remaining two Marauders' eyes popped open and jaws dropped even wider._

"_You used your toothbrush after scrubbing the staff room latrines?!" Remus cried in horror. And to think he dreamed of kissing that mouth! Sirius wrinkled his nose in disgust._

"_God, no! Eww! I threw my toothbrush away after detention" he flapped his hand in front of his to make a point, "I used Jamie's toothbrush."_

"_What?!" James glared at Sirius before pouncing on him and pounding him to smithereens (or otherwise attempting to)._

"_Black! Potter!" came a harsh yell from the front of the room. The two quibbling boys looked up into the stern face of Professor McGonagall. They quickly righted themselves, but Sirius muttered softly: "Watch me get out of this night's detention" before putting on his sexiest grin._

"_You know that won't work" Remus sighed, _'on McGonagall. On me though...' _he added mentally._

"_You want to make a bet on that?"_

The rest, shall we say, was history.

Remus appreciatively noted that the silence of their studying was often punctuated with the scratching of quills, swishing of book pages and small 'James, I need help on this's from Peter, sounds that were music to his ears.

But then there was Sirius's sighs.

While the werewolf didn't mind the other sounds, those damned sighs were grating on his nerves.

Sirius sighed yet again, not looking up from the writing he was doing on his piece of parchment. Remus clenched a fist inconspicuously before calming down and resuming his essay for Care of Magical Creatures. There was another sigh. This time, Remus slammed his fist down on the table and stood up abruptly.

"Dammit, Sirius!" he cried. The three glanced up at him, grins of amusement dancing on their lips. Sirius put on his best 'what did I do?' face. "Don't give me that! You know perfectly well. Now do your damned work or, I swear..." the werewolf growled menacingly before sitting back down and grabbing Sirius's parchment and staring to read through it. Well, not so much reading as staring for it was clear of any writing relevant to the subject Sirius was supposed to be working on but full of doodles and drawings instead. "This is what you've been doing for the past hour?!" he asked incredulously.

"Aww, Moony. Please let me go, I've been a good boy for the whole time we've been here" the animagus started with a grin. Then he became thoughtful before twisting his smile into a delicious pout, complete with matching puppy dog eyes, which he directed at Remus. The werewolf stared at him.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Oh, a girl used it on me once, fairly effective on me I should say, so I decided to try it out for myself. Is it working?" Sirius replied before resuming his puppy dog pout. Remus glared at him, willing himself not to give in. "Please, Remmie-poo?" came the whine. Remus glared harder and harder until he couldn't glare anymore. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Fine!"

"Yes!" Sirius pumped his fist into the air. He wrapped his arms around Remus's neck and pressed his lips against the tawny hair before bolting out of the library. Remus's eyebrows shot up into his hairline.

Did Sirius just kiss him?

He patted the spot tentatively before a small smile settled on his face. He then turned back to his essay.

"Remus?" came Peter's inquiry.

"Yes, Peter?" the prefect turned to him to see a poor attempt of Sirius's puppy dog pout. He inwardly blanched; Peter's did not look good by any means. Outwardly, he muttered, "Get back to work."

James simply looked thoughtful.

*****

It was quite a while (approximately two more hours) before Peter was able to successfully complete his essay. James had given up a long time ago and had moved on to look for either Lily (to pester into a date for Hogsmeade next week) or Sirius (well, just because). Remus, however, had stayed behind to help the rat animagus out. Merlin knows he needed it badly and Remus wasn't one to complain when any of his friends showed the slightest inclination towards learning.

They did miss dinner, though. And, while Remus had long since gotten over his hunger, Peter didn't quite feel the same way. He thanked the werewolf profusely before jogging off in the general direction of the kitchens. Remus chuckled softly and made his own way back to the dorm. Up until he was impeded by a pair of arms that seemed to materialize from a darkened corridor adjacent to the one he was walking along.

They grabbed him, forcing out a startled gasp, but the small sound was quickly stifled and replaced with a moan.

"You couldn't wait until we got back to our _empty_ dorm room before jumping me?" he asked with an amused tone apparent in his voice.

"But, you don't understand, Moony!" James cried, "I saw her! I saw her in her underwear!!" Remus balked.

"Underneath her thick, black robes and uniform?!"

"Well… yeah… In my head…" the stag admitted sheepishly, "But when I saw her flip her hair, my brain started into overdrive and I nearly lost my mind—!"

"Nearly?" the wry interjection.

"Nearly" he glared before adding, "I knew you would help me out… wouldn't you Moony? Please?!" he attempted Sirius's puppy dog eyes and failed miserably. But Remus simply grinned and rolled his eyes. He grabbed James's wrist and pulled him back up to the dorm. James slammed the door shut behind them and pressed his entire body up against the werewolf's, wrapping an arm around his waist. "Don't think I don't know that you need a little… uh… attention of your own" he whispered.

"Meaning?" was the reply.

"Meaning you need this as much as I do…"

No words passed between them after that.

*****

Sirius sighed and wiped the sweat off his brow while he trudged up to the dormitory. After the incident in transfiguration, leading to his current detention, McGonagall absolved Wormtail of all his offenses and doubled Sirius's. She had even seen him through his detention herself, working him like a dog (see Chapter 1 regarding information about puns). Hence, as he made his way to the Gryffindor tower, he wanted nothing more than to go straight into the shower and, after that, to bed.

The common room had quite a few people in it, including Wormtail who had engaged one member of the female Gryffindor population in conversation. He snuck past everyone, not wanting to deal with warding off his female admirers and started up the dormitory steps. At the top of the steps, however, he heard a slight noise emanating from said room. He smirked to himself. That noise, the squeaking of the bed, was a telltale sign that James was engaged in an activity of a different sort. He raised his knuckles and banged on the door loudly.

"Jamsie, while I fully support your bedtime activities, McGonagall drove me to the ground this evening and I really just want to go to bed. So please shoot your damn load and let me in!" he yelled amusedly.

"Bollocks!" was the muffled curse and a flurry of activity was heard. A second later, the door was pulled open and James allowed Sirius in. He ruffled his hair and walked back over to his bed where parchment, quills and books were haphazardly strewn about. Sirius frowned as he scanned the room. The girl James was supposedly screwing was nowhere to be found. In fact, the only other person in the room was Moony, sleeping on his bed.

"Weren't you…?"

"What?"

"Didn't you have a girl in here? I was sure I heard you doing… you know…" the dog animagus frowned in confusion. James looked at him, matching his look with a confused look of his own.

"What girl?"

"I…" Sirius glanced around the room again, his eyes slowing over Remus's stirring form. "Never mind." He then headed into the bathroom while Remus and James surreptitiously exchanged worried glances.


	4. Chapter 4

A prefect and a marauder were two personas that were, to say the least, completely opposite of each other. Where one was a law-abiding, studious and responsible person (among other admirable qualities), the other was a mischief-making, rule-breaking, havoc-causing cretin. As such, one would have to be either totally in control of who he is or suffering extremely from dissociative identity disorder to be able to contain both personas within himself.

It was a godsend miracle that Remus Lupin was who he was. He may be a bloodthirsty monster once a month, but he could at least declare without any trace of braggadocio whatsoever that he had full control of his mental state when he wasn't.

Then again, as a part of the (in)famous Marauders, his (so called) friends constantly tested his state of mind.

This was why Remus sought a break from the group occasionally in favor of another close friend (one Lily Evans-soon-to-be-Potter, as James would fondly refer to her), so that he may retain his reasoning and sane mindset.

That evening, after class, he had pleaded for a quiet, relaxing study session with the only person in the entire school willing to have one with him. It was their own form of repose from the demands and hassles (read: James Potter and Sirius Black) of everyday life. So he and Lily had holed up in the library, drowning in the sea of books piled on their table and loving it nonetheless.

"Remuuuuus!"

_'Oh dear god... No, please, NO!'_ was the only thought running through his mind as he braced himself for the worst. He squeezed his eyes shut and turned to see James sauntering over to their table. Lily scowled.

"What do you want, Prongs?" Remus asked with a sigh. James matched it with his own and plonked down on the vacant seat behind him, burying his head in his arms.

"I'm booooored" he moaned, "Oh, hey, Lily" he then added as an afterthought. Remus raised both eyebrows as did Lily. Very rarely was James bored when Lily was around and very rarely did he pass up an opportunity to woo the lady.

"And might I ask why are you bored? Where's Sirius? I thought you were going pranking?"

"We _were_ but then he decided to take up Slutty McPhereson's offer of a romp under the quidditch stands, leaving me all to my lonesome with a half-baked plan of pulling one over the unsuspecting heads of Hufflepuff firsties!" the boy cried. Remus chuckled.

"And you came to me, why?"

"Because you would _help_ me" was the leer.

"Ah, so that's all I am to you? 'Help'?" Remus rolled his eyes.

"Oh no, I love you very dearly as well" the stag teased, wrapping an arm around the werewolf's neck and planting a sloppy kiss on his cheek. Said werewolf grimaced, wiping the excessive saliva off his cheek.

"Oh be quiet, you prat, or go get Peter to 'help' you." James looked horror-stricken.

"You seriously don't mean that in the sense that I think you mean." To which, the prefect simply smirked. Sighing, James buried his head in his arms on the table and caught up on some Zs while Remus turned back to his work. Lily was watching the exchange with quite a fair degree of confusion and bemusement before she, too, turned back to her own work, happy that James decided to leave her be.

Remus tried to concentrate on what he was doing, intending to finish the first draft of the essay he was writing, but James's bothersome words rang clearly in his head. Sirius was with Sally (a.k.a Slutty) McPhereson, doing God knows what... or rather, acting out with nearly faultless detail Remus's every hope and dream. It wasn't fair that he did it with everything that moved (and the occasional things that didn't), except for the werewolf. I mean, James found Remus's company quite pleasurable, didn't he?

The prefect turned to his best friend and scanned the mess of hair. Better check.

He inconspicuously reached underneath the table, sliding his palm over James's thigh and grasping the crotch of his pants. The stag's head shot up with such blinding speed that he cricked his neck and caused Lily to drop her quill.

"Ow..." he moaned, but his body certainly reacted quite differently. Remus turned to him questioningly while secretly massaging the growing erection.

"What's wrong?" he asked innocently.

"Oh, you'll be sorry" James growled back. His eyes, though, sparkled mischievously.

"Potter, please stop interrupting us. We are _trying_ to get our work done here" Lily finally spoke in a huff. James shrugged but darted around to her side.

"My senorita speaks and who am I to turn a deaf ear at her every request?" he declared in a loud voice, grabbing one of her hands while kneeling. Lily pulled a face.

"Here's a request: GO AWAY!" she muttered. James stood up with a fake sorrowful look in his eyes. He bowed deeply, sweeping an arm out under him before kissing the back of her hand.

"I, a mere mortal, cannot deny the request of such a beautiful nymph. Therefore, I bid my adieu. Adieu, my sweet flower. I shall forever be waiting" he proclaimed loudly, to the disdain of one Madame Pince, before walking backwards out of the library, bowed at the waist. Remus laughed softly as he packed up his things.

"I better go see that he gets back to the dormitory safely. Even half of the Potter-Black tandem is a hazard to everyone when they are in a bored state" he explained. Lily gave a soft 'ah' and a nod as he leaned over the table and gave her a fond kiss on the forehead.

Once outside, he found James reclining against the wall beside the door, hands buried in his pockets. He grabbed the boy and roughly shoved him into a nearby broom closet.

*****

"Oh God, yes, yes! Right there... thatta girl..." Sirius moaned while Sally bobbed her head forwards and backwards against his shaft. He grabbed her by the hair and aided her movements with slight force, and action that he knew would drive her crazy.

_'I wonder if Remmie's still in the library?'_ he thought while the girl worked her magic... or tried to. Sirius let out another groan, hoping she wouldn't realize it was forced. The other day's evening was fairly strange; he hadn't yet forgotten what had happened. After years of using his bed, and those of the other Marauders', for more than what they were intended for, he was fairly certain that he knew all their sounds and what each one signified. But after finding James alone that evening despite clearly hearing it, he was forced to reevaluate his knowledge.

Unless...

But no...

They wouldn't...

...Would they?

Sirius frowned slightly.

What of it? What did that matter to him? Did it matter at all?

Of course not!

No, he was just curious. After all, he was their best friend. He did have a right to know if they were shagging right? Of course it was just for his own personal mental files and nothing more. He'd be a hypocrite to say he'd find them disgusting were they shagging.

He couldn't ask them outright; if they wanted him to know, they would have. Then again, he wasn't well known for his ability to keep secrets after spilling the fact that James still sucked his thumb occasionally and slept with his blankie-wankie.

He let out another moan to appease Sally's slowing pace. She immediately increased her speed and enthusiasm.

Maybe they had told someone else?

Sirius reevaluated Remus's other friends (James certainly didn't have any). After coming to a grand total of one, Sirius had decided on his course of action. Rudely pulling Sally off him and buttoning up his fly, he darted off without so much as a thank you. The girl simply yelled "Sirius!"

*****

"What is it, Black?"

"You know Remmie quite well... Has he ever mentioned...?"


	5. Chapter 5

It was strange that Sirius would come to her about anything, much less to ask for help. However, when he did, only then did she become more aware of the relationship between the two boys. Her glance kept flicking across the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall toward one particularly messy-haired boy and the one that sat opposite him; the one with tawny hair and eyes of glimmering amber.

No, there was nothing unusual about the way they interacted today. Nothing unusual at all in the way Remus smilingly scolded his two best friends who were locked in a mock-battle for his undying affections. Nothing unusual in the way James held Remus's hand and kissed the back of it, dramatically and loudly declaring his winnings over his competition, Sirius, as he always did on Tuesday lunch times. Nor was there anything off about Remus swatting said boy away and burying himself in his food, said smile never leaving his lips. Nothing strange at all.

And yet, everything was different.

Lily marveled at whatever forces had acted upon Sirius, enabling him to recognize the oddity in the ambiguous. But she, as a woman, possessed observation powers far above that of any normal male that had allowed her to see the extra sparkle in Remus's eyes, the increased lilt in his laugh, the glow in his once-pallid skin. And James didn't fare any better, or worse if you thought about it. He had an extra muss to his hair. He was extra loud. And, if it were any indication, he was extra polite (though it should not be confused with his sickly sweet politeness directed toward the head table, her or those he planned to victimize).

It was then that she realized the truth behind it all.

And then she got mad.

She slammed her fist on the table, startling her friends and those around her. James turned to her, slightly surprised at the outburst. Nonetheless, his lips twisted into a smile as he started singing:

"Oh, Lily, Lily, Lily. Lily my sweet, Lily my flower!" he swayed over, intent on wooing her, while Sirius snickered behind him. The canine animagus slipped back into his seat beside Remus, who was engaged in a conversation with Peter about Flobberworms and Kneazles, and started pestering the werewolf's food. Lily muttered something incoherent about the boy in front of her, whose eyes were nearly filled with hearts. She grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him out of the Great Hall, much to James's utter delight. He stole a glance at his friends who were giving him thumbs-ups before following the object of his desire out and into a vacant classroom.

Lily slammed the door shut behind them while James shut his eyes and leaned forward, lips puckered and arms outstretched. Lily blanched before smacking him upside the head.

"Disgusting, Potter" she growled. James frowned and rubbed the sore spot.

"So what are we doing here?" he asked, thoroughly confused and disappointed that he wasn't going to have the snogging session with Lily he had, for so long, dreamt of. Lily drew up to him menacingly, a finger brandished at him like a sword.

"I know what you are doing" she hissed, "stop it."

"Doing? Doing what?" asked the stag.

"You'd better stop what you are doing to Remus. You're dragging him along... using him" she crossed both her arms over her chest. James's eyes widened as he held up both his hands in defense.

"I don't ask for his help! He usually offers to help us with our homework! Well, granted we often end up copying his instead, but hey, what are friends for?"

"That's not what I'm talking about!" the redhead cried in exasperation. "I know you, James Potter. I know that once you grow tired of him, you would drop him like a hot potato and run off with the next bird that catches your fancy! Remus isn't someone you can fool around with, James. Besides being your best friend, he is someone who's worth protecting. Worth loving!" Realization dawned on James as he finally pieced together what Lily was talking about. He dropped his hands to his sides while he grasped at his thoughts. "Here you go, swaggering around with your disgusting display of affection for me or sleeping with some girl that would give you no chase and, all the while, you drag Remus along and use him whenever you fancy a quick shag--" James grabbed her angrily by the shoulders and shook her vigorously, cutting off any more of her tirade.

"Is that what you think?!" he very nearly yelled. Lily was stunned into silence. For all the times she had hexed him into oblivion, she had never seen this amount of his anger directed at her. "You-- You think I'm USING Remus?!" he spluttered, clearly appalled by her accusations. She opened her mouth to speak but James cut her off. "No, don't. You have no idea what you are saying" he released her reluctantly, his fingers leaving a dull pain on her shoulders. "I would never, ever use Remus. EVER. You were right, he is worth protecting, worth loving. And I do. I love him, like a friend, like a brother."

"But, you-- you aren't...?"

"What? Shagging? Well... yeah" James ran a hand through his hair. "Look, he and I came to find that we were both in need of something we couldn't get from those whom we desired... loved..." He looked pointedly at Lily before continuing. "I sought refuge with other women. He stopped messing around entirely. But then, he and I got talking about it and... well, it moved on from there. He's entirely aware that everything is completely platonic between us, friends with benefits you could say, and I am too."

"But you don't know everything about him... Wha-- Who he is. Given his... his mother's illness, he values friendship above all else. He may be quite aware of your agreed-upon relationship, but, if everything continues, he may fall into a false sense of security and... something more" Lily shot back.

"Mother's illness? What--- Oh. OH!" James's eyes widened before he burst out into a bout of humorless laughter, "You daft woman! We've lived with him up in our dormitory for five years! Don't you think we would have figured that out by now?"

"But..." Lily realized that she shouldn't have underestimated Remus's friends.

"We figured that back at the start of our second year" James added, "Does he know you know?" The redhead shook her head.

"I only just figured it out" she admitted, abashed.

"Look, I appreciate your care for Moony, but I would like to inform you that I would do nothing... NOTHING... to hurt him. I would do anything and everything for him and I would protect him from anyone and anything. As you said, he deserves to be loved and protected. And I will." With that, the black-haired boy stalked out of the room, leaving Lily a confused mess.

She stood there for a long while contemplating their exchange. She had always figured James to be an obnoxious twat who cared for no one but himself. She had been wrong very few times. This, she realized, was one of her bigger mistakes. There had had to been a reason James was sorted into Gryffindor and this was it. Fiercely loyal to his friends and willing to stand up against anyone, even the person whom he claimed he loved. When she finally moved, her thoughts had come to only one simple conclusion.

She felt deeply attracted to James.


	6. Chapter 6

James found the remaining Marauders lounging in their dorm, apparently waiting for his triumphant return from his "snogging session" with Lily. Sirius and Peter were playing exploding snap on the carpet in the middle of the room while Remus was, as usual, reading on the bed. With a sigh, he plopped down beside Remus and watched the pair on the floor.

"So?" came Sirius's amused question, "I'm assuming you didn't get some?" James threw a pillow at his face.

"Hey, that was mine" Remus frowned. James shot him a quick glance. It was so brief that Sirius and Peter wouldn't have caught it. But Remus, in just that little, insignificant look, knew exactly what Jame wanted. "Look, if you two plan on starting one of your infamous pillow wars, leave mine out of it. You've already destroyed most of mine, which are barely hanging together even after the house elves had repaired them. I, in the meantime, will be completing my ancient runes essay peacefully in the library." With that, he gathered up his belongings and purposefully strode out. James hung back a little while longer, joining a rousing game of exploding snap, before declaring:

"I'm going to go look for Lily and ask for forgiveness... maybe try to woo her into going with me to Hogsmeade next weekend?" The pair in front of him snickered and Peter mumbled a "riiiiiight."

"You do that then" Sirius patted his friend's back before giving him a huge shove out the door, literally throwing James down the stairs and earning the stag a large 'thunk' and a matching bump on the head.

"Bastard!" he yelled at the dog before Sirius simply laughed and slammed the door on him. James muttered something incoherent about 'feeding a dog chocolate' and jogged out of the common room. His feet took him automatically toward the library, completely bypassing a certain redhead. He gave a small nod to Madame Pince, the librarian, and started inside the library looking for Remus. A pair of arms emerged from behind a bookcase and wrapped around James's neck, pulling him into darkness. A pair of lips covered his and a warm body pressed up against him. He gave a soft moan and wrapped him own arms around the waist in front of him. Reluctantly, he then pulled away. "Rem..."

"Don't think about her, James. Next time" came the husky reply of one Remus Lupin.

"No, wait, Rem..." James held him at arms length, "Maybe next time... I want to talk." He muttered a quick spell which Remus didn't quite catch before walking over to a window. He returned moments later with his Quidditch broom in hand. He mounted it and beckoned Remus over who looked at it warily. "It won't bite" he teased, to which Remus glared at him, before adding, "Come on, I won't let you fall." Remus sighed and climbed behind his best friend, wrapping his arms around the messy-haired boy's waist. He gave a small squeak as James pushed up off the floor and squeezed the both of them through the fairly large window. He then closed his eyes and let the cool night's breeze wash over him. James simply chuckled and flew them over the Hogwarts castle.

They came to a halt and Remus found himself standing on a wide ledge just beneath the Astronomy Tower. He looked around at the view and gave a small murmur of appreciation. The near-full moon's moonlight touched nearly everything, giving them a fairly good view of the castle roof, grounds and those beyond the Hogwarts boundaries and giving those that it touched a soft, white glow.

James turned to the werewolf and found him in a similar state, glowing in the light of the moon. Briefly, he wondered what Remus would really look like under the glow of the full moon if he weren't a snarling, bloodthirsty beast. Remus turned to him, his head cocked to one side.

"So what did you want to talk about?"

"Lily."

"Ah."

"She kind of found out what we're doing."

"Oh..." Remus frowned, "How?"

"I dunno. But she confronted me about it and..." James sat Remus down beside him and turned his full attention to the werewolf. "Do you think I'm leading you on?"

"So this is what's been bothering you?"

"Well... she got me thinking..." Remus shook his head and took James's hand, patting it comfortingly.

"James, you and I have both agreed on this and we both know the truth. Don't let anybody get you worked up. You love Lily and I love Sir--" he stopped, realizing his slip. James's eyes grew wide.

"You were going to say Sirius" he pointed out.

"No I wasn't."

"We've been shagging for, what, four months and you've always been tight-lipped about it and now you let it slip and I've FINALLY found out who you've been lusting after!"

"It's NOT Sirius!" Remus cried desperately. James found it quite hilarious as he clutched his stomach laughing. The werewolf simply glared at him until he stopped. He wiped the tears of mirth from his eyes and said, a little more seriously:

"Remmy, I couldn't care less if you fell in love with Lucius--- oh wait, yeah I do care. But falling in love with Sirius... God, you should have told me earlier, I would have knocked some sense into that oaf into going out with you." The werewolf's glare never wavered until James leaned in and kissed him. "Rem, you're like the little brother I never had. I love you for that. I want you to make you happy. Tell me if you feel that I'm stringing you along and... and we'll stop." Remus cupped James's cheeks and stared into his eyes deeply.

"A little brother you shag? That's sick" he murmured seriously. James burst out laughing.

"How bout a friend with benefits?" Remus mumbled an "mmm" before leaning in and kissing James. "So how about that shag?" The werewolf chuckled and rolled on top of him.

********

James returned to the dorm with elephant-sized ears and two large front teeth, looking more than slightly miffed[1]. Peter took one look at him and burst out laughing, clutching his sides and wheezing all the while.

"I take it Lily didn't accept your apology?" he crowed. James frowned at him before kicking him soundly on the rump. Peter growled and launched himself at the stag, who simply side-stepped causing Peter to fall gracelessly on the floor. This time, it was James who laughed. He walked over to the mirror and tried a couple of counter curses for the hex on him, unsuccessfully. He turned to Sirius.

"Hey, man, come on. I need some help here." Sirius simply grunted and continued glaring at him, his arms folded over his chest. James frowned before looking away and resuming his counter curses. "What's wrong with you?"

"He's been like that ever since you left" Peter supplied helpfully. He stole a glance at Sirius. "Look, I've been keeping him company for a while now but he's already starting to creep me out. I know, from experience, a mad Sirius is not someone I want to be in the same tower with, much less the same room. So I am heading off to the kitchens to round myself up some food while you find out what's wrong with him." With that, Peter left, leaving James stealing occasional glances at his best friend.

"What? Melissa Wilters turned down your offer for a shag?" he asked nonchalantly, "You certainly seem in your 'I-need-to-get-laid-but-can't-find-a-bint-who-would-oblige' mood." He finally found the right counter curse and watched his ears and teeth return to their normal size. Then he turned to the brooding Black heir.

"I saw Lily head up to her dorm a few minutes after you left" came the short reply. James stopped, his breath hitching. "Lily is the only known woman in Hogwarts who would hex you. If you weren't with her, who could have possibly done that to you?"

"Snape and I got into a tussle."

"Oh really?" Sirius drew out a piece of parchment. James gulped. It was the Marauder's Map. "And Remus just happened to be with you on the rooftops and Snape in the Slytherin common rooms while it happened?"

"We were talking, what about it?"

"Was that before or after you tussled with Snape?"

"Fine, so I wasn't 'tussling' with Snape. Moony and I had a chat about Lily. I couldn't very well talk to you or Peter, you would just laugh at me! You know Moony is the only one of us sensitive enough to listen and offer advice. GOOD advice" James yelled. "Besides? What do you care? You're acting like a jealous boyfriend!"

"I--" Sirius stopped. He realized James was right; he was acting like a jealous boyfriend. He had asked Lily to investigate about the two of them and now he was doing his own investigation and interrogation. Why DID he care what his best friends did without him? They were both staring intently at each other when Remus walked in. He took one look at both of them and an eyebrow shot up.

"What did I miss?"

"Well, Sirius here was just about to tell me why he was interrogating me about our talk on the rooftops" James folded his arms over his chest, "You know, our talk about Lily and me." Remus coughed softly. Sirius frowned at the blush staining Remus's cheeks.

"I was just curious as to why you two have been sneaking off a lot lately" he offered.

"We weren't sneaking off."

"Oh, come on, Moony, you've been spending more time than usual in the library. Even more than you usually do. You sing in the shower, you laugh a lot more, you read romance novels instead of your usual textbooks, you laugh at our ridiculous prank ideas when you would have snorted in contempt, you're less sarcastic--"

"You noticed all that?"

"Well..." The three grew quiet. "Look, I just want to know what's going on" Sirius sighed, "If you don't want to tell me, fine."

"Nothing's going on, Sirius" Remus replied.

"Okay then."

"Okay."

"Good."

"Good."

"..."

"I'll go find what Peter is doing" Sirius suddenly said, standing up and rushing out of the room, leaving Remus and James staring at the door as it slammed shut.

"I didn't notice all that" James offered. "Well, except for the singing in the showers thing. You do have an awful voice, Moony." Remus hit him. "Seriously though, he was unusually observant..." Remus mumbled a soft reply before crawling on to his bed and pretended to sleep, all the while musing over Sirius. James stared at the door thoughtfully and followed suit moments later.

*****

[1] In case you didn't get it based on the story, it was James who put a hex on himself to disguise the fact that he and Remus were meeting. It wasn't effective, though, seeing as he left the map and Sirius was able to figure it out. =)


	7. Chapter 7

James smirked as he spooned a healthy serving of bangers and eggs onto his plate that morning, mentally congratulating himself in advance for a to be superbly-executed, infallible plan. In front of him, he watched Sirius flirt with a totally hot, surprisingly brainy Hufflepuff blond while Remus scarfed down his own sausages, casting quick glances in the said brunet's direction. The stag once again mentally patted himself on the back as he caught sight of the disdain (for the girl) and jealousy (for Sirius) dripping from the werewolf's gaze.

You see, as daft as he was, he was quite certain... no, make that undoubtedly certain that his best friends Remus and Sirius were meant to be. Getting them together was the problem.

Remus had explicitly told him, in a conversation about Sirius a while back, not to do anything that would jeopardize his friendship with the dog animagus and James could not quite agree more. Remus deserved to have a special someone in his life, but if James wasn't sure about how Sirius felt about Remus and his hunch turned out to be wrong, not only would Remus lose Sirius as a lover, but he may also lose him as a friend.

However, after two more months of observing Sirius, he still hadn't come to any definitive conclusion. So, in the end, he decided that he had to find a way so that Sirius would confess his feelings for Remus and not the other way around.

Oh sure, Sirius was loudly and proudly bisexual. Sure, he shagged everything that moved (and the occasional things that didn't). What was difficult for James though was that, even despite the hints from when he almost caught the two of them in the dorm a while back, he had never seen any indication that Sirius wanted to shag Remus. Well, there was the 'playful banter' mentioned, wherein Sirius would pretend that he and Remus were more than 'just friends,' but Sirius did that with James!

Did that mean he liked James too?

_No! NO! Bad thoughts, bad!_

James shook his head and refocused his thoughts.

His clues that Sirius wanted Remus as much as Remus wanted Sirius was how the dog acted during the full moon. Padfoot was always a tad more physical with Moony as they would often engage in rough play. Sure it could be attributed to them both being canines, but James believed it was more than that. While Remus transformed inside the shack, Sirius was always the one hopping up and down on one foot as if he needed to pee, impatient at the sound of the boy's screams and the wolf's howls. Padfoot was always the first on the scene and the last to leave. Sirius was always the one that stayed behind to care for Remus the morning after. He was the one who always paled at the sight of new wounds and bit his lip with worry while he bandaged them up.

And then there was the last full moon.

After a quick, playful brawl, Moony rolled over onto his back by Padfoot's front paws. Padfoot gave a growl before dipping his head and closing his jaws around the werewolf's exposed neck. They stayed that way for only a few seconds before Padfoot released Moony and resumed their play. He was sure Wormtail didn't recognize the gesture and Padfoot and Moony were probably too engrossed to fully comprehend the happening. But Prongs bore witness and was fully aware. James had done his research about wolves and werewolves (yes, yes, surprising, I know. Now pick your jaws up off the floor and accept the fact that James knew where the Potter manor's library was and knew how to use the things in it) and knew exactly what the gesture meant.

After that evening, James had come up with a plan. If all went well and if James's guesses were right, Sirius would be the one confessing his undying love for the tawny-haired werewolf instead of James telling Sirius how Remus felt. If not... well, he'll cross the bridge when he got there.

Five days later, today to be precise, his plan to get Sirius and Remus together was in full effect. He hadn't told Remus about it, since the element of surprise was an integral part of phase one.

James watched numerous owls flying into the Great Hall and dropping off parcels, letters, newspapers and what-have-you to their respective owners. There was a flurry of activity in the Great Hall as owls swooped down here and there and people engaged in conversation regarding the deliveries. When the last owl had left and everyone had settled down, James began counting down from five...

four...

three...

two...

Not a second later, twelve beautiful, snowy white owls flew in. They circled overhead, just below the ceiling, flying around in an elegant and captivating dance. Students and professors alike were drawn to watch the unusual display, noting that, in each beak, there was a single, deep red rose. Then one owl broke formation. It swooped down toward the tables, the rest of the owls and the eyes of everyone following it. It soared over to the Gryffindor table and dropped the rose in its beak onto the plate (which was cleared of any food) in front of one stunned Remus. After the twelfth owl had dropped its treasure, they rose back up to the ceiling and flew out.

James slipped his wand out from his robes and, under the table, quietly performed a charm that caused said roses to rise up and bundle together beautifully with a gold ribbon just as a large gray and black eagle owl swooped in the hall. It too, circled overhead before dropping its package, three boxes of the finest, most expensive Belgian chocolates Remus had ever seen, on top of the neat pile of roses.

To everyone's surprise, it perched itself onto the shoulder of a grinning, messy-haired, bespectacled boy.

James plucked a sausage off his plate and offered it to the owl who hooted in appreciation. It allowed James to pet it for a moment before it took flight. James rested his elbows on the table and leaned on them, watching Remus expectantly. Nobody spoke as they watched the exchange between the two Marauders, but it was a while before any word was spoken.

"James?"

"Yes, Moony?"

"These aren't for Lily." It came as more of a statement that Remus wanted.

"Yes, Moony."

"Whose are they?"

"I thought the chocolates would be a dead giveaway."

"I--" Remus's eyes widened, "I think I'd better go finish my runes essay..." he mumbled before gathering up his things. He started to walk off but halted and turned back to the gifts on the table. He considered leaving them there but he thought that would be terribly rude. Hurriedly, he picked them up and walked out of the Great Hall, shivering under the questioning gazes of everyone else. After he had left, the Great Hall burst into activity, discussing what had transpired. James grinned to himself and stood up, whistling and walking jauntily away without so much as a backward glance to the two remaining Marauders.

Oh, well, Lily would just have to wait a little bit longer.

*****

"Hey, Prongs!" came the yell in the entrance hall. James was about to head out when he heard it. With a knowing smirk, he turned to Sirius.

"What's up, Pads?" he asked nonchalantly.

"What the hell was that?"

"What was what?"

"That! In the Great Hall! With Moony" the dog frowned slightly.

"Well, Paddie" James slung his arm around Sirius's shoulders, "I've decided to give Remus a go." Sirius turned to him and shoved him quite roughly.

"What do you mean 'a go'?! Remus isn't some bloody amusement park ride, you sod!" James smiled inwardly; he was getting somewhere.

"That's not what I meant you idiot!" he yelled back. "What I meant is that I've finally come to my senses. Lily hasn't ever and will probably never give me the time of day, so I've decided to stop trying. But Moony" he feigned a thoughtful, lovestruck look, "He's perfect. He's smart and kind and helpful and considerate. And Pads, he'd damn hot. I'm not sure why I never saw it before." Clearly, Sirius hadn't either, the way a contemplative look crossed his face. But then he frowned again.

"Remus isn't a rebound guy" he pointed out, "He doesn't deserve to be treated as a second choice. And you better make damn sure that you aren't using his to make Lily jealous." James stopped and considered his best friend's words; he hadn't thought about that. Well, he'd concocted up another win-win situation after all. Despite it being a complete and utter lie, he shot back:

"Of course I'm not using him to make Lily jealous! In fact, I'd say you're acting more jealous of me than she is of him!"

"I am not!"

"Whatever, Sirius, deny all you want" James scoffed. He had to focus all his efforts toward keeping a grin off his face; it was time to plant the seed. "Look, whatever you may feel for Moony, tough because I want him. If you do, you'll just have to win him from me." Then, as an afterthought, "I do have quite a head start, though, just to remind you." Then he flounced (yes, flounced) off.


	8. Chapter 8

Passing by a startled redhead who had caught the entire brunt of the best friends' conversation, the stag animagus flounced his way out of the entrance hall and all the way up to the library. These past six months, he had been finding himself in the aforementioned place more than he should have and should ever be. Libraries and Prongsies do not mix well.

Kind of like... like... like Snape and shampoo! Yeah, like that. Except that Remus made him do things he had never even imagined doing (studying, you perverts!). Moony had a special kind of magic that way.

James casually saluted to Madame Pince, whose eyes narrowed at the boy. She was about to utter a warning but James quickly slipped behind the bookcases and headed towards Moony's usual table. Said werewolf had his nose buried in a thick and ancient tome which, James was surprised to find, hadn't turned to dust at the slightest of touches.

"Hey, Moons" he greeted. Remus looked up at him and his eyes narrowed. James vaguely wondered if Madame Pince had taught him the move; he'd certainly spent enough time in there for her to do so.

"I thought I told you to not do anything stupid" the prefect said. James's eyebrows raised as he smiled innocently. A smile that could fool no one, most especially Remus.

"And when have I ever done as you say?" he asked. Remus continued glowering at him until, finally, he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose in an utterly Moonyesque gesture.

"Why did you do that?" he murmured in defeat.

"Don't sound so sad, Moony. I'll have you know that I have a perfectly good explanation as to why I did that!"

"And that is?"

"Because you are going to help me win over Lily!" There was no use getting Remus even madder at him by informing him that his entire reason for creating quite a ruckus was for Sirius to notice and confess his undying love for the werewolf. The exact werewolf who was now staring at him with a look that plainly said 'Are you _trying_ to be stupid?'

"And how exactly will announcing to the entire school that you are gay help you get the woman of your dreams?"

"Why, Moony, did you not figure that out yet?" James asked triumphantly. Remus continued staring at him. "Why, with plain old jealousy!" When his announcement was not greeted with cheers and praises of how intelligent and cunning he was, he asked, "Well? What do you think?" Remus sighed heavily.

"I, for one, do not believe that there is even a remote chance of success" he replied, "One, Lily is not dumb. Two, when has that plan _ever_ worked?" James opened his mouth to speak but Remus cut him off. "But since you are the one who is going to suffer from this failure, I do not mind playing along." Then he smirked their trademark Marauder smirk, "I may even enjoy watching you crash and burn."

"That hurts, Moony. That hurts right here" James made a show of pointing his finger to his chest. Remus simply laughed.

"Okay, so bring me up to speed. How exactly does wooing me allow you to win over Lily?"

*****

Sirius glared at his best friend as said best friend dragged him around Hogsmeade. He could've spent the day dragging around his favorite werewolf, but no. This particular idiot claimed that he _had_ to help him. That he could _not_ do it without Sirius's help. While the dog was still pissed at the stag after their small spat the other day, he did admit that flattery would get you anywhere. And James had not been stingy.

Nevertheless, after being asked 'Do you think Moony would like this?' for the fiftieth time, he had _had _it.

"Sirius--"

"Shut _up_, James! If you ask me one more time, I swear..." he growled trailing off while his hands gestured expressively that he would wring James's neck without so much as a second thought. James blinked at him and dismissed the threat uncaringly. He held up a forest green cloak, made of the finest quality velvet. It had gold clasps that were each studded with a small emerald.

"I'm getting him this for his birthday" he declared. Sirius looked back and forth between James and the cloak. He knew that it cost an exorbitant amount of money, not that James would care. The Potters were, after all, one of the richest families in the wizarding world. More importantly, he knew that, not only would Remus look positively radiant in it, the werewolf would _adore_ James for getting it for him (after he finished half-heartedly stuttering that James shouldn't have done so). Sirius wasn't sure he was comfortable with Moony declaring his undying affection for Prongs over a cloak.

"It's okay" he replied with a careless wave of his hand.

"'Okay'?! It's _okay_?!" James gaped. "Sirius, this cloak costs more than all the contents of the entire Gryffindor house put together!"

"Sorry! Fine, it's better than 'okay'; it's nice. Sheesh!" the dog animagus held up his hands in defense. James looked at the cloak thoughtfully before sighing and putting it back on the rack.

"Never mind. I'll get something else." They walked into a couple of stores before James decided on buying a shitload of chocolate instead. "So what are you getting him?" he asked innocently. Then again, everyone who knew James knew that nothing he ever said or did was innocent. Sirius, thankfully, didn't seem to notice as he started running over in his mind the things he could buy Moony. Eventually, he simply shrugged.

"You go on ahead. I still can't think of something to buy, so I'll hang back a while until I do" he told James. The stag shrugged and slapped his back.

"Thanks, man" he grinned and jogged off. As soon as he saw James disappear, he turned and bolted toward the shop from earlier. He grabbed the cloak James had contemplated buying and ran to the clerk.

"Do you have this is a medium?"


	9. Chapter 9

After all that fuss of getting James to not buy the cloak, it turns out the shop didn't have one in Remus's size. Nor did they have any alternative that could quite match up.

Luckily for Sirius, though, as he was trudging back to Hogwarts dejectedly after a long day of unsuccessfully searching for the perfect gift for Remus, he chanced upon a small shop that sold various useless trinkets. It wasn't a place that screamed abundance or luxury, a common trait of the past stores Sirius had visited. In fact, the items that were sold there were old, broken or partially damaged.

Finding nothing better to do and having exhausted all other options, he walked into it. An old witch dutifully stood behind the desk, neither helpful nor rude. She gave no greeting to him but simply watched him as he looked around and poked at various things.

After several minutes of, again, being unable to find the perfect gift, he started back towards the door. That was when the witch stirred.

"Your friend may like this" she called out. Sirius withdrew his hand from the doorknob and turned to her, about to retort a sharp remark about the state of her wares and about how she wouldn't know what Remus would want. But he was surprised to find that what she held up was, indeed, the exact thing he was searching for. He gazed at it fixedly, unable to find any faults or flaws before he turned to her and asked:

"What do you want for it?" The witch held his gaze unwaveringly.

"30 Galleons." Without so much as batting an eyelid, Sirius drew out a small pouch. He picked out three, maybe four, extra galleons and threw the rest on the desk before snatching the item and walking out. His face bore a soft smile as he carefully pocketed it.

*****

"You took longer than expected" James noted as the dog entered the dorm. It did not escape him that Sirius looked completely satisfied with himself. Sirius shrugged and headed toward the bathroom.

"Well, after you beat me out on the gift I had in mind, I had to find something else."

"Why not just get more chocolate and sweets?"

"Because that would be encouraging Moony's unhealthy addiction; we wouldn't want him to become fat, now would we?" the Black heir called out from the bathroom, "By the way, where is the birthday boy?" James scoffed.

"Where do you think? I swear, if he spends any more time in there, I will start becoming painfully jealous of Pince." Sirius scowled. He had momentarily forgotten of James's intention of courting his werewolf and was vaguely bothered with the idea of James becoming jealous of anyone for said werewolf's affections.

_Wait... 'Yours'...?_

_Yeah, mine, got a problem with that?_ The young pureblood thought to himself.

_No, no... Just wondering... _With a satisfied smirk for winning over his contending self, he walked back into the bedroom.

"So what did you get him" he was asked as he launched himself onto his bed before pulling out a sugar quill. He made a noncommittal noise, clearly indicating that he wasn't about to tell, to which James threw a pillow at his head. "Prick" the stag laughed. Sirius growled and threw the pillow back, followed by another pillow. A second later, a third pillow was thrown. This time it had a poorly-concealed shoe embedded in its center. A loud 'ow' sent Sirius into fits of laughter which, in turn, prompted James to scream "PILLOW FIIIIIIIGHT!!!" followed by an oddly Tarzanesque wail.

When Remus entered the room moments later and found feathers floating about, he groaned quite loudly and called out a quick "Aresto Momentum!" Both warring boys found themselves engaged in an amusing slow-motion pillow fight before they figured it would be best to stop on account of that the object of their affections (well, mostly Sirius's) had entered the room. James slowly (and I mean slowly) dropped his pillow and "ran" to Moony. The werewolf chuckled and let down the spell. This caused James to speed up too much and crash into the boy, both of them toppling down onto the ground. James didn't seem to mind as he pulled Remus into a bear hug.

"Ahem" Sirius called out.

"Oh, we'll meet you later" the stag replied, pulling Remus up while clearly dismissing his best friend. Sirius scowled and watched James brush Moony off. He saw the boy place a wet kiss on the prefect's cheek, to which Remus blushed brilliantly.

"James..." Remus murmured, gesturing to Sirius who sunk back onto his bed.

"I am not leaving, so if you two are going to shag, you'll just have to do it while I'm here" he grumped, for the life of him wishing they didn't.

"I never would have thought that you had voyeuristic tendencies in you, Sir" James laughed. Remus brushed the boy off and walked into the bathroom while saying:

"No, we aren't going to, Siri." The dog could have wagged his tail in delight while James whined loudly.

"I was planning to give you your gift if you agreed to" he teased. Remus poked his head back out.

"What gift?"

"For your birthday, silly!" James walked over and placed his arms around Remus. The prefect looked thoughtful.

"No" he finally said, "We will definitely not be shagging, but I am still expecting my gift." He turned to Sirius and raised his voice. "_Gifts._" Sirius chuckled. "And I am expecting heaps and heaps of chocolates, just to give you a forewarning." To that, Sirius guffawed loudly.

"I could get you the entire Honeydukes, if you'd like" he offered, then leered lecherously, "for a fee." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Remus cracked a grin before flicking his wand, sending three, well-aimed pillows at the pureblood's head. James smiled fondly at their banter; getting them together was the best thing he had ever thought of. And tomorrow, he would finally get to put the cherry on the cake. Starting toward the door, he called out:

"Be back later, I'll just have a run down to the kitchens."

"Get me a pumpkin pasty while your there!" Sirius shouted back.

"And a chocolate tart while you're at it" Remus added hastily. James gave an affirmative noise and chuckled as he heard Sirius say:

"Dear lord, Moony, cannibalism much?"

Now, to set up the stage for the final part of his plan.


	10. Chapter 10

Hello everyone. Sorry I haven't been able to update in a while. Caught up it various what nots and all that =) Nothing particularly interesting =)

*****

Even the most avid fan of intense subjects like arithmancy and ancient runes would be dying to escape from the torture that most students would call learning if such acts were situated on one's birthday. As such, while the professor droned on, Remus was itching to stand up from his seat, his fingers twitching in anticipation of the end of the class. In fact, the werewolf was so fidgety in excitement that Lily, his only friend who took the same arithmancy subject, had to hiss at him to calm him down. Remus gave her an apologetic smile before mentally counting down from ten.

_...three..._

_...two..._

_...one..._

"Thank you everyone and do not forget to read the last entry in the fourth chapter of your books!" the professor called out to uncaring students' backs, Remus and Lily included. With a deep breath, Remus savored the surprisingly different air of the corridor. He figured that the mixture of boredom, wonderment and learning created the stuffy atmosphere of the classroom, a great contrast to the freshness of the air coming in through the corridor windows.

"Oh" Lily suddenly remarked beside him. "James." Her tone sounded confused and so Remus followed her gaze toward the opposite wall of the corridor, directly in front of the door to the classroom.

"Oh" he mimicked. He couldn't figure out why he hadn't noticed the stag before, when, in fact, he stood out from the crowd quite spectacularly. James leaned against the wall casually, dressed in muggle attire: a tailored black blazer and blue jeans. They both made him look quite dashing. On his shoulder, he slung a bouquet of flowers equally casually, as a beater would do to his bat. He was missing his trademark round-rimmed glasses and his hair was... it was...

_How the _hell_ did he manage to slick it back?!_

True enough, the naturally unruly, impossible-to-tame (well, almost) messy black hair of James Potter was flattened neatly and gelled back away from his face. This gave everyone a very different and surprisingly pleasant new perspective on his features. A smirk played upon his lips as he pushed himself off the wall and walked toward the stunned werewolf. All movement in the corridor, except those of the attentive and curious eyes of the students, had stilled. James neared Remus and pulled him close, pressing their bodies together rather closely. A soft blush spread over Remus's cheeks as his best friend dipped his head to whisper quietly in his ear:

"Do you have _any_ idea how utterly and deliciously _fuckable_ you look right now?" Remus's blush deepened. He was glad no one else was able to hear the message, despite the stillness in the area. To everyone else, it seemed as the taller boy was whispering sweet nothings in his ear. James continued, his lips deliberately brushing against the shell of the prefect's ear as he spoke. "Merlin knows how much willpower it's taking me just to keep myself from slamming you against that wall over there and taking you right here right now. Everyone be damned." Remus opened his mouth to speak but James cut him off. "In fact, the only thing standing in the way of you, me and that wall is a bottle of chocolate syrup and a can of whipped cream up in the dormitory and the image of you slathered in both." To that, Remus chuckled.

"I'm very sure I'm not the one you'd want to lick those off" he murmured in a seductively sweet whisper. James's laugh took on an oddly debonair quality that Remus had not been quite sure he was able to possess.

"Oh, you are, you are" he assured, "just not the only one." Then he stepped back. "I got you these." He handed Remus the large bouquet of 24 yellow roses, charmed so that they took on a glassy and glittery quality. "They match your eyes perfectly" he pointed out. Remus blushed yet again. "Don't I get anything in return?"

"I know what you want, Prongs, and it's not mine to give" the werewolf pointed out amusedly. James shook his head and, in one quick move, drew Remus in closer and enveloped the smaller boy's lips in his own. Around him, dreamy sighs came from the girls watching the exchange jealously.

"Get a bleeding room!" came an irritable yell, then a softer, but still highly audible "Fucking exhibitionists..." James burst out laughing yet again and released Remus before clapping Sirius on the back.

"Don't get mad at us man, it's not our fault you haven't been able to get some lately" he sniggered, then leered, "or maybe you're holding out for someone?" Sirius pushed his best friend's arm off his shoulder.

"Piss off. Come on, Remmie, I'm half-starved to death" the dog tugged the blushing boy's arm while heading in the general direction of the Great Hall.

"Sir, wait. I need to speak with you about something" James quickly grabbed his best friend's elbow and steered him in the opposite direction before the pair could get any further away from him. As they neared the corridor, nearly out of earshot, he yelled back to Remus "we'll catch up in a sec, luv," prompting the boy to hurry after a departing redhead, his bouquet of roses in a tow. Heading into an empty hallway, James turned to Sirius and started with "ask Lily to be your date tonight." Sirius's frowned.

"She's not my type" he muttered uncooperatively. His slitted gray eyes scanned his best friend warily as he spoke "If this is some strange plan you have for me to help you court Moony, you're not getting it. My help, I mean."

"No, no. I'm not asking for your help with anything. I just want you to bring Lily to the dinner I'm planning for tonight." Sirius's eyes widened in comprehension then abruptly narrowed. James was about to explain but he was stopped.

By Sirius's fist.

"Ow! Shit! What they fuck?!" the stag cried, staggering back and clutching his right eye as he howled in pain. Sirius stormed over to him and drew him up by the collar of his jacket until they were nose to nose. Their faces were so close together that, if the silver eyes weren't flashing so dangerously, James would have vaguely wondered if Sirius was going to kiss him.

"I warned you that you better not be screwing around with Moony in order to get into Lily's knickers!" he snarled, drawing his fist back again. James, however, was not a pushover. Before Sirius could swing his fist, the stag shoved him back quite roughly and got in a shot of his own.

"You stupid sod!" he yelled, "You didn't even hear what I was going to say!" Sirius growled in a feral fashion, reminiscent of the way Padfoot's wolf ancestors would, and pounced on the stag. Between trading punches, James managed to belt out "She's Remus's..." a grunt "other best friend!" A slap of flesh meeting flesh. "Don't you think--" a war cry "--Moony would want her--" James grunted again. With surprising strength, he flung Sirius across the hall again and drew his wand out, casting a full body-bind curse before the other could react. "--there" he finished, panting heavily. Sirius fell onto the floor like a puppet whose strings were cut. James sighed and plopped down beside Sirius who was busy glaring murderously at him.

"Look, Sir" the messy-haired boy wiped his nose free from blood, "Despite what you, and everybody else may think, my world does not revolve around Lily Evans. I honestly want Moony to be happy. I want him to be surrounded by the people he loves and the people who love him. Like it or not, Lily is one of those people and so she has to be there. Now, with me and Remus going together and Peter bringing his own lass, don't you think it would be gentlemanly and far more appealing to her to invite Lily along with us as your date rather than asking her to tag along with us, dateless?" Sirius moved his eyes around madly, trying to convey to James that, if he was expecting a reply, the Black heir could not very well give one. "Oh sorry."

"She could bring her own date, you know. And what makes you think I don't have my own date?" he asked after the curse was lifted.

"I want to keep it as intimate as possible" the stag shrugged. "I only allowed Wormy to bring his own date since I can't think of any more girls who are friends with Remus."

"Then why not get Wormy to date Lily?"

"Who are you so adamant about bringing anyway?"

"I--" Sirius's reply died on his lips, seeing as he was not planning on bringing any date. He simply shrugged instead and they sat together in silence. "This isn't a ruse to get me and Lily together, is it?" he asked after a long while. James's laughter was infectious and he soon found himself joining his best friend. "Okay fine" he conceded, "I will." James nodded and stood up. Sirius's afterthought halted him, though. "James?"

"Hmm?"

"Take care of him" Sirius murmured softly, but James caught the warning in the undertone. He stared squarely into Sirius's eyes.

"As if I could do a better job than you." Sirius frowned in confusion at the answer but nodded nevertheless.

*****

I'm hoping that truly didn't suck =) Reviews will be very much appreciated! =)


	11. Chapter 11

He certainly raised a lot of questioning eyebrows, one brown eyebrow more notable than the rest, when, in the middle of a bustling common room, he casually asked Lily out on a date. Before Lily could flat out refuse and hex him into oblivion, Sirius pulled her aside, out of earshot, and explained what James told him earlier in the hallway. Being as perceptive as she was, she figured that he didn't have any lewd tendencies toward her and that he was just doing it to satisfy James's odd logic and even odder thoughtfulness. Nevertheless, the idea was not so repulsive to her, being it Remus's birthday and all. So she accepted.

"You will?" Remus asked, highly surprised. His heart hammered wildly in his chest as Lily turned to him to smile and nod. He then turned to Sirius who shrugged indifferently and jumped onto the couch beside him, settling his head down onto Remus's lap and closing his eyes. "Where... where's James?" the werewolf asked meekly. Sirius peeked one gray eye open and replied.

"He promised me a piece of pie from the kitchens. I'm sure he'll be up shortly." Remus frowned at the disappointed note in his voice, but his thought shifted as the exact bespectacled boy he was looked for walked into the common room. He shoved a startled Sirius off his lap and unceremoniously dumped him onto the floor. The prefect stepped over him and hurriedly pulled James up to the dormitory.

"Sirius is taking Lily on a date" he informed, starting to panic. James noted it and grinned inwardly.

"Yeah, I know. I told him to" he said. The werewolf looked downtrodden.

"Why?" he asked, thoroughly confused, "Don't you like Lily anymore? You _know_ I like Sirius... If he's going out with Lily, then... he and I..." Then he looked up at James questioningly. "Did you purposely do that to keep him and me apart? Are you, you know... in... in lo-- falling for... me?" the smaller boy stuttered, barely able to utter the words. James eyes widened as the intention of his decision for Sirius to take Lily was misunderstood and he shook his head wildly, holding both hands up in front of him.

"Moony, that's not it, I swear!" he protested. Remus was about to speak again, but he placed a palm over the other boy's lips. "There was no other purpose but for Lily and Sirius to not feel left out, okay? I love you, Remus, but I've already told you, you're like my brother. Lily is the only one for me" he smiled dreamily as he thought of the redhead.

"Okay... I just wanted to clear things up" Remus exhaled in relief. "So there's really nothing between them?" James shook his head. "Okay..."

"I have something for you by the way" the stag grinned and gestured toward the bed. Remus followed the length of his arm with his eyes until his gaze landed on his bed. Upon it was a formal tux with a white coat and a red carnation on the lapel, evocative of the muggle fashion of the 40s. Glancing around at the other beds, he found that they too had tuxes upon them, in black, gray and navy blue.

"What are they for?" he asked, walking over and inspecting the one on his bed.

"For tonight" James answered triumphantly, "Why don't you get ready? Go take a shower and put this on. We'll all go down together" he suggested and exited the dorm in search of the other two Marauders and their dates to inform them to get ready as well.

*****

Lily was decidedly impressed with how James had planned and executed Remus's birthday party. She looked down on her bed and fingered the soft fabric of the emerald green silk charmeuse dress. Beside it lay a box of simple and yet elegant jewelry and matching shoes. Needless to say, everything was much too opulent compared to her usual style but, for heaven's sake, she was a woman and she loved dressing up beautifully.

After casting a quick drying spell on her hair, she dropped the towel around her frame and slid into the dress, loving the feel of it on her newly-showered skin. After doing her hair in a cascade of barrel curls and pinning up one side with a barrette, she put on the earrings, necklace and the shoes.

James, she decided as she twirled around in front of a mirror, inspecting her attire, has fabulous taste. Then, a little abjectly, she realized that he was no longer courting her. She gazed at the pair of green eyes looking back at her from the mirror. After all those years of pushing him away, he finally did. And she didn't like it one bit...

"Lils?" came a call from the doorway. One of her roommates, Tasha, came in, "The boys wanted to know if you were done..." then stopped and remarked "oh, wow." Lily smiled at her.

"It's not too much?" she asked, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

"Not in the least bit" Tasha hugged her briefly, "You are certainly going to give the devilishly handsome Sirius Black a run for his money."

_He's not the one I'm trying to impress_ the redhead thought mentally while nodding in careless agreement.

"Go ahead, they're waiting for you downstairs." The girl sighed wistfully. "It's not fair that they're taking Belinda... I'm your friend, I should get to go" she pouted. Lily laughed.

"Well, then you should have targeted Peter instead of Sirius, shouldn't you?" To that, Tasha scrunched up her nose.

"Off with you now!" she ordered, ushering Lily out the door. Lily took one step out and matched the intake of breath James took when their eyes met. Sirius may be the resident Greek god of Hogwarts, but in Lily's eyes, he paled in comparison to the strikingly good looks of James in muggle formal wear. His glasses were once again discarded and his hair was neatly parted (Lily made a mental note to ask about the spell later. It must be akin to one hell of a sticking charm to tame the wild mop that was James's trademark). He practically turned Lily into melted butter the way she nearly gracelessly descended the girls' dormitory steps as he watched her. At the base, though, Sirius was awaiting her and she reluctantly hooked her arm into his as they made their way out of the common room.

Ahead of them, James and Remus walked, arm in arm, with the stag arrogantly smirking at those who watched them with wonderment as they passed by. Behind them, Peter had collected Belinda from the Hufflepuff tower and had caught up as they neared the entrance hall. Curious as to where they were going and why they were doing so in their designated attire, Lily had to ask.

"Where are we going?" James looked back at her and smiled mysteriously. The rest of them realized they were headed toward the quidditch pitch, which only served to make them even more confused. Just before they could fully see what James had concocted, the stag stopped, turned to Remus, kissed his cheek and said:

"Happy birthday, Remus." He swept an arm out, inviting them to gaze upon the middle of the pitch. Remus was mildly stunned.

In the center of the grassy field, a table for six was set up quite magnificently. Soft candlelight made the crystal goblets and gold-plated cutlery glitter romantically, as did the centerpiece of flowers and foliage, whose dewdrops were charmed to imitate diamonds. The floor beneath it was covered with hardwood that stretched just a little more to the right, revealing a string quartet who were playing soft music. The setting was covered by a tent, in case of rain, but more importantly, to create a warm, intimate feel. Fairly lights and yards of red and gold chiffon fabric certainly helped in setting the atmosphere.

"Wow..." the werewolf murmured after a long while. Sirius raised an eyebrow at the stag's gesture but otherwise said nothing. The girls softly echoed Remus's sentiment as James lead the way toward the table and helped Remus into his seat.

The birthday celebration was, indeed, in a formal setting, but its commencement was hardly so. In between courses, James and Sirius told the girls stories of the exploits of the Marauders with great enthusiasm and detail and were met with laughter and smiles. Remus and Peter often interjected with a smilingly sarcastic comment from Remus and gushing adoration from Peter. Lily figured that, as a prefect, she should report some of their misdeeds, as Remus had obviously failed to do, but for tonight, she couldn't care less. James's hazel eyes were alight with mirth when he caught her gaze and his smile widened even further.

At the end of the main course, James stood up. As the activity around the table settled down, he held out his hand to Remus and murmured: "Dance with me." Remus smiled warmly and nodded, taking the proffered hand and being led toward the empty space in front of the quartet. Soft music enveloped them as James waltzed him around the dance floor surprisingly well. This prompted a question from Remus for it was not everyday that you found one of your best friends had a rare talent that was rather frowned upon in normal teenage society.

"Where I learned to dance?" James asked back, "Most pureblood families require their offspring to learn such dances. You see, we often attend formal events and parents wouldn't want their sons or daughters to make fools of themselves, now would they?" he smiled, "In fact, I know quite accurately that Sirius is a very good dancer and that I am sure he will forgo his fear of appearing all Black-y in favor of asking you for a round." They both turned when Sirius tapped James on the shoulder. James seemed to be expecting it as he dipped his head, matching Sirius's bow, and stepped aside. Sirius smiled hesitantly and swept Remus into his arms and around the floor.

Remus was even more stunned. James had been a good dancer, but Sirius was on another level. Not only was the lad good, he made even Remus seem like a professional with the way he lead the prefect. Remus caught his gaze and nearly melted. The warm hand pressing his back and the other clasped around his own right hand were not doing him any favors either. As their bodies naturally drifted even closer and as Remus dipped his head to rest on Sirius's chest, the pureblood slowed his pace and placed both of Remus's arms around his neck. His own arms wormed their way around the smaller boy's waist.

They were barely aware of any other occurrences around them, such as James and Lily and Peter and Belinda joining them on the dance floor, as they swayed slowly against each other. The dimmed lights, the ethereal glow and the warmth around him only made Remus doubt any of it was actually real. But it was.

He was here.

In Sirius's arms.

The one place he, for so long, wanted to be.

"Rem?"

"Hmm?" He really didn't want to lift his head from the perfect spot on the broad shoulders of the dog animagus, but if it was only to look into his eyes, well... Remus could tell you with ease what the better option was.

"I have something for you" Sirius smiled lopsidedly. He stepped back and reached into his pocket, hesitating only slightly before drawing out a small, velvet pouch. "I don't want to seem all girly and all, but I really hope you like this..." he thrust it into Remus's hands and looked away nervously. James smiled knowingly and twirled Lily around. Remus's heart increased in pace as he pulled open the drawstrings. Reaching into it, he gingerly drew out the object and held it up into the light. Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "I really wasn't sure what to get you and this was the best I've seen, but if you don't like it I can always take it back and exch--" Words were lost among the kisses lain on his lips.

Remus wrapped his arms around the animagus's neck and failed to stop himself from doing something he hadn't fully thought through. When Sirius responded, though, he dropped further protests from his rational mind and parted his lips for Sirius's tongue.

"I take it, you like it?" he asked with a smile once they had parted. Remus simply nodded as Sirius took the necklace from the werewolf's palm and wrapped it around his neck. Remus delicately fingered the pendant, a gold crescent moon wrapped around a silver star, and a small smile settling upon his lips.

At the risk of sounding cliche, tacky, corny and hackneyed, this was undoubtably the best birthday he'd ever had.

*****

Okay, so it isn't really clear that Sirius and Remus got together at this point, though I hope it is. Anyway, to make things clearer, I'll come up with the final chapter soon enough. Of course, it wouldn't be fair if James and Remus got to shag whereas Sirius and Remus don't, so, maybe if I get a lot of reviews, I could be persuaded to write a smut scene?

Okay, not necessarily 'a lot'. Maybe even 'some'... or at least 'one'... review? (Note pleading voice and a totally failed and pathetic attempt at puppy dog eyes=)).


	12. Chapter 12

Was it mentioned that, by saying the line "this was the best birthday one had ever had," one would appear cliché, tacky, corny and hackneyed?

It was?

Oh well, the truth does not always appeal to the imagination of many. Which is why, when the truth included a deliciously-dressed, sleep-claimed, gorgeous brunet in bed beside one when one woke up the following morning after a perfect birthday celebration, one had to question the validity of the situation, such as Remus was doing right now.

The soft light of the morning sun managed to slip through the drawn curtains and settle exactly over Remus's shut eyes. As you can imagine, even with closed eyes, this was still not particularly comfortable for a person grasping at the last remnants of sleep. Finally, Remus gave up his tug-of war against the sunlight for the sleep he should be getting after hours of partying that managed to continue well into the wee hours of the morning. He opened his brilliant amber eyes only to settle them upon the prone form of a certain dog animagus.

His breath hitched in his throat as he watched the steady rise and fall of the pureblood's chest. Each breath drew back memories from the previous night.

Were they even memories or were they actually dreams?

Well, given that they were still clad in the garments James had given them and given that they were wrapped in one another's arms akin to a newly-married couple, Remus could guess with a decent amount of certainty that what he was remembering were, in fact, memories and not dreams. However, it seemed so surreal that he could not help but question the factuality of it all.

"I can't believe you're thinking so deeply at a godforsaken hour in the morning after going to sleep just minutes ago" came a soft grumble. Remus felt the chest his hand was lain on vibrate and he knew that it was Sirius talking. Not that he would have not known by the voice of the brunet, having memorized every pitch and octave of said voice.

"Just because you can't think at any other time..." was his automatic playful banter. Sirius grinned sleepily, peeking open one eye to glance at the boy beside him.

"Good morning, beautiful" he murmured, leaning over to place a kiss on pink lips. Remus braced himself for the butterflies that were about to burst from his stomach as his best friend neared, but then the curtains were thrown wide open and there stood a triumphant James, hands on both hips and wearing a smug smile. Beside him stood Peter. When he caught sight of the pair, though, his smile faltered.

"Look, James" Sirius started, getting up. James turned to him, his eyebrows raised in question. He crossed both arms over his chest. Sirius looked a bit guilty but steeled himself nevertheless. "I... I want Moony... I know you do too, but I'm prepared to win him from you" he stood face-to-face with his best friend, "And I'm really sorry, but I am definitely going to win." Sirius thought he would start smacking him around after that, but instead, James grinned.

"I was just going to say how disappointed I am in you, Sirius, for, shall we say, 'falling asleep' with clothes on" he snickered. Sirius and Remus's jaws dropped.

"What?" Sirius asked, thoroughly confused. James sighed and patted his shoulder before continuing as if talking to a three-year-old.

"I've known you 'wanted' Moony for a long time now. Ever since you 'caught' us in the dorms a while back" he explained, "I was hoping... nay, _expecting_ you to get together at yesterday's birthday celebration. This was why I did everything the way I did starting with the roses in the Great Hall!" he declared with triumphant flourish.

"You told me you were trying to make Lily jealous" Remus growled.

"Yeah, that too" the stag grinned, unaware or otherwise uncaring of the deadly stares he got, "It wasn't originally part of my plan, but when Sirius pointed it out, it became a very welcome side effect. I didn't particularly make any steps toward that direction, save for the dress and stuff I got her. The rest of the things I did were to make Sirius here jealous." The canines shared glances. "Now come on, Sirius, let's get breakfast while Moony cleans up." James started tugging on Sirius's arm, pulling him toward the door.

"Why? Don't I get to shower?" Sirius asked, annoyed, pulling his arm away.

"No" was the short reply before the resumed tugging.

"You spend all this time, effort and money to get us together and the first morning of our relationship, you drag him away?" Remus tugged Sirius back on the other bed by his other arm, "Take Peter with you. Go on! Shove!" James scowled playfully and declared:

"Fine! Be that way! After all I've done for you!" with a dramatic huff, he pushed Peter out of the dorm and followed. Just as the door was about to close, though, James poked his head back in, a teasing smirk on his lips. "Don't forget to use protection and STAY OFF MY BED!" Remus blushed brilliantly, but Sirius yelled back:

"I WON'T MAKE ANY PROMISES!" before plopping back down on the bed beside Remus. They stared at one another thoughtfully and hesitantly.

"So..." Remus started.

"So..." Sirius mimicked.

"I... um..." Remus gestured between himself and the bathroom, indicating that he was to start getting ready for a day of classes. The animagus nodded absently, contemplating on the next actions he was going to take. His boyfriend was almost out of reach when he eventually decided that thinking should be reserved for pranks and nothing more. Tossing aside all remnants of thought, his hand darted forward and grabbed Remus's wrist. In one simultaneous movement, he kneeled up on the bed and pulled Remus closer toward him, pressing their chests together and kissing him gently on the lips. The werewolf's eyes fluttered shut as he melted in the pureblood's arms.

His arms moved of their own accord, wrapping themselves around Sirius's neck as Sirius's did around his waist. He felt a warm tongue slide over his lower lip and vaguely wondered who it belonged to. But when he involuntarily parted his lips and a foreigner plundered his mouth, he got his answer.

Sirius skillfully pulled him from a standing position to lying down, deliberately delaying the action of pressing down against the smaller boy's body. With his tongue, he traced every inch and contour of the werewolf's mouth, eliciting moans that shot down straight from his ears to his loins. Clearly, his ministrations had the same effect on his lover as the prefect sought to rectify the distance between them by arching up and crying "Merlin, Sirius!"

When their clothed erections came into contact with one another, Sirius could no longer restrain himself. He tore the white blazer off Remus's shoulders and grumbled incoherently with every button he had to undo on the shirt underneath. Remus followed at a slower and calmer pace, although he felt no less desperate than Sirius. Seconds of parting were far too long and, in the middle of undressing, they pressed their half-naked bodies together one again, lips and teeth clashing in the midst.

Remus's hands ran over every muscle on Sirius's shoulders, chest, stomach and back as he clawed for a foothold on the raging emotions he felt. Sirius left his lips and trailed his way down to the thin neck of the werewolf, ensuring a path of love bites with each minor stop he made. Said boy could only groan and pull Sirius down against him tighter to rub himself against the other. The animagus grasped at the button and zip of the black slacks he wore and undid them, before pulling both the pants and the underwear in one swift movement. Remus helpfully kicked them off of his feet before returning the favor with Sirius's pants.

The friction they had experienced earlier could not compare to what they felt now, and they both nearly came as their naked erections came into contact with one another. Remus moaned headily as Sirius grasped his cock while making his way down the length of his body. Teasing would come at a later date. The only thing Sirius could think of was being _in_ Remus right _now_. He slid two of his fingers into the prefect's vacated mouth and commanded him to "suck" while he himself proceeded to do so with Remus's cock.

Remus moaned loudly, his hips bucking into the warm cavern that was quickly engulfing him. He obediently followed Sirius's command, ensuring that both digits were wet enough when their owner pulled them out. He drew his legs up subconsciously, knowing what was soon to come and was rewarded when Sirius pushed his fingers experimentally onto his entrance.

Sirius sat up, enjoying the sight of Remus writhing on the bed as he finger-fucked him. With his other hand, he fumbled around in his bedside drawer for the small bottle of oil he always kept there.

Remus's mantra of "Sirius, Sirius, Sirius, please!" did nothing to quell his raging libido. He prepped himself sloppily but quickly and withdrew his fingers from Remus. The werewolf wrapped both of his legs around Sirius's waist and drew him closer, lifting his hips up off the bed slightly. Sirius murmured appreciatively and grasped both sides of his pelvis for leverage as he pressed forward.

"Oh!" Remus gasped as the head of Sirius's cock slipped in. Sirius bit his lip apologetically but his hips seemed not to obey him by pushing forward. He couldn't restrain himself from entering, although he managed to do so slowly to allow Remus to adjust to him. The smaller boy seemed to test his patience, though, as the legs around him tightened, drawing him in faster and his lips uttered "Faster, Siri... God, please, harder!" With such a beautiful boy begging in such an amorous way, Sirius could do nothing but comply.

He withdrew himself all the way but for the head before slamming himself back in to the hilt. Remus cried out and arched his back off the bed. Sirius repeated the motion with much enjoyment until he was pounding into his lover quickly and roughly. The werewolf's cries only served to encourage him and he grasped the neglected cock before him.

Remus's eyes snapped open as soon as the calloused hands grasped him. A few pumps was all it took before his seed came spurting out and onto his stomach. He cried out "Oh, god, Siri...!" as it did and his muscles clenched around Sirius's cock. Sirius didn't need much incentive to come as well. The sight of his lover in bliss was enough, but the muscles' contraction was more than welcome. He rammed his way into Remus one last time and pressed his face into the crook of Remus's neck before groaning loudly and coming inside his lover.

They spent the next few minutes that way. Breathing heavily and reveling in the aftermath of their lovemaking. It was Sirius who finally made the first move by sitting up and withdrawing his now flaccid erection. He brushed a stray lock of hair off Remus's brow and smiled.

"You are so beautiful" he murmured and leaned down for a gentle kiss. Remus moaned softly and smiled back when they had parted.

Needless to say, they never did get to History of Magic that morning, and for once, Remus couldn't care less about school work.

END

*****

Woohoo!!! My first completed series fic _ever_! I'm so happy that I managed to stick it through (I usually don't) =D

I'm now working on my second fic 'Reclaiming Our Vows' and I do plan to complete that one as well. I hope all of you guys who just finished reading this one would also read that. I, personally, like the plot of my second fic better, I hope you will too =D


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